just how I feel when I need a tea break and the queue in the cafe is too long.

12

STEM

dd

one of those annoying double definitions that took ages to get as I ran through synonyms of both words in my head.

14

ARCHIPELAGO

(A PAIR EG + LOCH)*

strange surface

21

TATE

(s)TATE

flap = state

22

BESTSELLER

BEST + “cellar”

I was surprised that the enumeration of (10) is correct.

26

MANSE

hidden &lit

excellent.

27

REDHEAD

(HAD REED)*

REDHEAD is often used to refer to the pochard.

28

SINCERE

CE in SIN+RE

nice clue.

Down

1

PARODY

DO< for T in PARTY

not sure what the surface means but I like the dual use of party.

3

SHORT RANGE

(GRANT HORSE)*

6

PRIM

P+RIM

another simple but effective clue

7

CLAPTRAP

CLAP+TRAP

16

COTTAGER

COT + (GREAT)*

the definition of COT here requires referring back to the main definition.

17

FESTERED

TREES* in FED

19

PLUNGE

LUNG in PE

20

BREEZE

dd

24

MATE

dd

MATE = china (plate) = tea

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I just read a little about Rabelais and it turns out that his first book was published under the pseudonym Alcofribas Nasier, his real name was François Rabelais. He would have enjoyed cryptic crosswords!

Hey Kate – 8d is the following (yet another cryptic definition) – http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/thermion. I don’t have any problems with Physics, but I only know about three sorts of plant and two of those come in a BLT. Note the setter’s name is “Quantum” – not much of a leap to suggest he is a fellow science geek.

I agree with what I think Colin is saying, and I found the whole puzzle rather unsatisfactory? Far too many CDs, some not very good (especially weatherman!). As for me expecting to know Rabelais – well…

8dn: Thermion is in Chambers (under ‘therm’) as ‘an electrically charged particle emitted by an incandescent body’. I agree with Stan that the setter being Quantum may be relevant, but his link to wiki ‘did not compute’.